T Levels

Industry placements are a requirement for all T levels students, who must complete a placement of a minimum of 315 hours to receive their T Level, however some employers have been unable to offer placements because of the additional costs associated with hosting a student.  In order to support employers the Department for Education (DfE) have announced a one-year Employer Support Fund to help fund the additional costs associated with hosting a T Level student for an industry placement. 

The Employer Support Fund is available for students who start a placement between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024, and is managed by the T Levels providers. Funding may be claimed for every student offered a placement, although the maximum amount of funding available to any one employer is £25,000.

Eligible costs include:

• Administrative costs – direct costs of setting up processes, procedures and systems for the placement and providing a physical workspace for the student.
• Training costs – direct costs of providing staff with the practical skills to support students on placement (i.e. mentoring)
• Tangible costs – costs of operating the placement (including PPE or other equipment, insurance, security passes, mandatory vaccinations, mandatory training, software licensing, materials and supplies, supervising a student on placement and transport for the student.)

All costs claimed for must be directly attributable to the placement and would not have occurred otherwise and must not be used to pay students a salary or wage.

To apply for the Employer Support Fund, all costs must be declared on an Employer Declaration Form under the three types of eligible costs.  The completed form covers all the students being claimed for and must be counter-signed by the provider.

Employers are encouraged to speak to their provider if they are interested in learning more about the fund.  Additional information on the Employment Support Fund can be found below:

• Employer Support Fund: Overview
• Employer Support Fund:  Funding Rules
• Employer Support Fund:  Guidance for Employers

The Department for Education is hosting a series of free webinars for employers on T Level industry placements. The workshops will cover a variety of topics including placements in specific skills areas and looking at some of the broader concerns about placements that have been raised by employers.

Some of the workshops that may be of interest include:

• Engineering and Manufacturing industry placements (3rd November)
• Business and administration industry placements (9th November)
• Industry placements in a remote or rural locations (17th November)
• Legal compliance for industry placements (3rd December)
• Agriculture, environment and animal care industry placements (8th December)

Full listing of the webinars and registration